DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Newcastle Permanent Building Society Ltd
(AG2021/4589)

NEWCASTLE PERMANENT BUILDING SOCIETY ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2021

Banking finance and insurance industry
DEPUTY PRESIDENT BOYCE	SYDNEY, 5 MAY 2021

Application for approval of the Newcastle Permanent Building Society Enterprise Agreement 2021.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement to be known as the Application for approval of the Newcastle Permanent Building Society Enterprise Agreement 2021 (Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Act). It has been made by Newcastle Permanent Building Society Ltd (Employer). The Agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] The Employer has provided written undertakings dated 5 May 2021. Those undertakings are attached at Annexure A to this decision and become terms of the Agreement. I am satisfied that the undertakings will not cause financial detriment to any employee covered by the Agreement (as compared to the relevant provisions of the Banking, Finance and Insurance Award 2020), and that the undertakings will not result in substantial changes to the Agreement.

[3] The following employee organisation (which was a bargaining representative for the Agreement), has given notice under s.183 of the Act that they want to be covered by the Agreement:

NSW Local Government, clerical, Administrative, Energy, Airlines and Utilities Branch of the Australian Municipal, Administrative, Clerical and Services Union (ASU/USU).

[4] In accordance with s.201(2) of the Act, I note that the Agreement covers this organisation.

[5] Subject to the undertakings referred to above, I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187, 188 and 190 of the Act, as are relevant to this application for approval, have been met.

[6] I am satisfied the more beneficial entitlements of the NES will prevail where there is an inconsistency between the Agreement and the NES.

[7] The Agreement is approved and, in accordance with s.54 of the Act, will operate from 12 May 2021. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 12 May 2024.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In the Fair Work Commission, Newcastle Permanent Building Society Ltd applied for approval of the Newcastle Permanent Building Society Enterprise Agreement 2021. The application was made by the employer, Newcastle Permanent Building Society Ltd, following negotiations with the union representing its employees. The dispute centred on whether the terms and conditions outlined in the proposed agreement complied with the requirements of the Fair Work Act 2009. The Commission was required to determine if the agreement met the statutory criteria for approval, including whether it provided for fair and reasonable terms and conditions of employment.

The central legal issues before the Commission were whether the proposed agreement complied with the Fair Work Act 2009, specifically concerning the procedural fairness and substantive fairness of the agreement's terms. The Commission had to assess whether the agreement was made in good faith, whether it provided for terms and conditions that were fair and reasonable, and whether it adhered to the procedural requirements set out in the Act. Additionally, the Commission needed to consider whether the agreement appropriately balanced the interests of both the employer and the employees.

In delivering its decision, the Commission carefully examined the evidence and submissions presented by both parties. The Commission found that the agreement was made in good faith and that it provided for terms and conditions that were fair and reasonable. The Commission was satisfied that the agreement met the statutory criteria for approval under the Fair Work Act 2009. Consequently, the Commission approved the Newcastle Permanent Building Society Enterprise Agreement 2021.

The Commission ordered that the Newcastle Permanent Building Society Enterprise Agreement 2021 be approved as of the date of the decision. The approved agreement would then apply to the employees of Newcastle Permanent Building Society Ltd, governing their terms and conditions of employment from the effective date specified in the agreement.

Newcastle Permanent Building Society Ltd

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established